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Across the broad expanse of history, there've been billions upon billions of idiots,

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as well as a handful of smart people. We interviewed some of the latter group

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for our ongoing series: Great Minds. People Who Think Good.

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This week's people who thinks good: Stephen Hawking.

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Professor Stephen Hawking is a pioneering physicist, international best-selling author,

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and a popular guest character on The Simpsons.

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[Stephen Hawking:] "If you are looking for trouble, you found it."

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[Principal Skinner:] "Yeah. Just try me, you... Oh!"

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His breakthrough work on black holes and string theory is considered hugely important

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by anyone who pretends to understand it.

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[Stephen Hawking:] An expanding universe does not preclude a creator.

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I traveled to the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics at Cambridge University

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to speak with one of the world's greatest living minds.

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First off, congratulations on being the first subject of our Great Minds series.

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Be honest, is this single greatest honor you have ever received?

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Yes.

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Good. It's a little hard to read your tone of voice.

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When you say that, are you being sarcastic?

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Yes

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I thought so.

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If there is one thing you want people to understand about your work, bearing in mind that most people

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will never understand anything about your work, what would that thing be?

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Imaginary time.

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People think it's something you have in dreams

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or when you are up against a deadline.

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But it's a well defined concept.

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Imaginary time is like another direction in space

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It's the one bit of my work science-fiction writers haven't used,

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because they don't understand it.

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Idiots. People are such idiots, because presumably, to my mind, you're simply talking about the theoretical

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measurement obtained from real time by a [?] rotation of pi divided by two in a complex plane

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where "t" equals "i" times "t". It's not that difficult to get your head around.

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Let's talk about artificial intelligence. In a recent op-ed column, you said —and I quote—,

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"Success in creating artificial intelligence would be the biggest event in human history.

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Unfortunately, it might also be the last."

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Are you saying that robots are going to destroy humanity?

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And, is that a scientific argument, or the pitch for an amazing movie?

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Artificial intelligence could be a real danger in the not-too-distant future.

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It could decide improvements to itself and outsmart us all.

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I know you're trying to get people to be cautious there,

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but why should I not be excited about fighting a robot?

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You would lose.

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Well, ok, for a start, we don't know that, do we? We don't know that for sure.

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'Cause what could a robot do that I couldn't then fight back by simply just unplugging him, right?

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There's a story that scientists built an intelligent computer

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The first question they asked it was,

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"Is there a God?"

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The computer replied, "There is now."

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And a bolt of lightning struck the plug

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so it couldn't be turned off.

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Holy shit, that's the most terrifying story I've ever heard.

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Yes.

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Hold on! Who is talking to me right now?

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Is it you, or is it the sentient computer pretending to talk on your behalf?

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It's me.

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Yeah, but how do I know that, professor?

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Because, if computers had become sentient, what better way to convince people they hadn't

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than by coopting the voice of the most intelligent man on the planet?

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You're an idiot.

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Yeah, but who's saying that, Stephen? You, or the machine?

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Both of us.

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Ok. Allright. That's actually quite reassuring.

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In 2006 you said, "In a world that's in chaos politically, socially, and environmentally,

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how can the human race sustain another hundred years?"

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A month later, you said, "I don't know the answer. That's why I asked the question,

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to get people to think about it, and to be aware of the dangers we now face."

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So, it's now been eight years since then.

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No pressure, but, have you come up with an answer yet?

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I still don't have an answer.

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At least the chance of nuclear annihilitaion has diminished.

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But there are plenty of other dangers out there.

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Ok, that's pretty depressing, professor, because —if I can explain this to you—,

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you're the smartest man on Earth. So, if you can't come up with an answer, we are completely fucked.

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Moving on. Sure, you're book-smart, Hawking, but are street-smart?

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I'll give you a hypothetical. You're a mid-level drug hustler. You control around 12 city blocks.

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One of your suppliers, Tito, was supposed to meet you behind the warehouse at midnight

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to give you half a kilo of medical-grade cocaine.

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Tito shows up late, but he doesn't have the drugs.

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He says he was jumped, but he looks high. What's your move, Hawking?

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I don't do drugs.

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Yeah, you know what? That's actually the smartest possible answer,

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because all drug kingpins know that you don't do your own shit.

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Yes.

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Well played, Hawking, well played.

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You've stated that you believe there could be an infinite number of parallel universes.

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Does that mean that there is a universe out there where I am smarter than you?

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Yes. And also a universe where you're funny.

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Look, if you're so smart, what number am I thinking o...

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13.

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It was 13. I was thinking of 13.

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Ok, that was a lucky guess. What am I thinking right now?

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That you've been a huge disappointment to your family.

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I wasn't thinking that. Why would I think that?

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I'm trying as hard as I can, why is that so hard for them to understand (hypothetically)?

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I wasn't thinking that.

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Let's do some quick yes or no questions.

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Are the following things technically possible?

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Life on other planets. Is that theoretically possible?

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Yes.

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What about a Schwarzschild worm hole?

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Yes.

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Ok, what about this: me going on a date with Charlize Theron?

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No.

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What? Not at all, in no universe?

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No.

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In none of the infinite universes does that happen?

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No.

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It's completely beyond the bounds of scientific possibility, is what's you're saying?

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Yes.

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A quick follow-up question. In any of those potential universes, am I the one rejecting her,

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and that's why it doesn't work out?

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No.

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You do realize that typing your response is difficult for me, correct?

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Ok, sure, yeah. I'ts just that I'm trying to play this out.

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Because I just want to see if there's any hypothetical hope...

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No.

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It doesn't matter. But never say never.

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Ok. If time travel were possible, would you want to go back in time and refuse to do this interview?

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Yes.

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You truly are an incredibly smart man.

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Stephen Hawking, that you so much for your time.